WHUMP That was the sound their bodies made when they hit the sidewalk. Whump. Whump. Whump. A sobbing, despairing voice: "Oh Lord, they's killing theyselves." Whump. At the time, their soul-shattering leaps into space were rarely included in the news, usually screened as too horrible for public view. I first heard them over eleven years later on the Military Channel. Like mine, every eye that filled with helpless tears grimly remembered those tragic innocents with grief, compassion and love. Most eyes also reflected unconscious resolve to become better human beings. If good ever comes from terrorism and brutality, this involuntary response of our shared humanity to inexpressible evil may be an instance. Whump. Bert Kortegaard | 
